Parks and Rec Commissioners Pitch Further DPW Study, Eye 2012 Ballot

Town Administrator William Keegan is lobbying for the proposal to face a Town Meeting vote next month.

Under a proposed plan by Town Administrator William Keegan, voters would decide next April if the Department of Public Works would take over the maintenance of town parks, a job currently under the Parks and Recreation Department. In a presentation prepared for the joint meeting between the Parks and Recreation Commission and the Board of Selectmen, Keegan said the plan would make the system of maintaining parks more efficient. “[This would] allow the Recreation Department to concentrate its attention for the development of recreation programs,” Keegan said. Town Meeting will consider a warrant article next month that approves the move, however several steps would remain. The town would have to negotiate with the involved unions, iron out …

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Dedham Selectmen OK 2.97 Percent Base Increase for Keegan in New 3-Year Deal

Selectmen voted 3-1 Thursday in favor of Town Administrator William Keegan's 3-year contract that includes $1,800 more for an auto allowance.

The Board of Selectmen voted 3-1 Thursday to renew Town Administrator William Keegan’s contract for another three years with a 2.97 percent base salary increase. The new contract is retroactive to July 2010, the beginning of fiscal year 2011, and good through the end of fiscal year 2013, or June 30, 2014. Selectman Carmen Dello Iacono was the lone dissenter in the vote, saying at the meeting that it was “not the person, but the package.” Selectman Paul Reynolds was absent from the meeting. “We will continue to work well together. The package deal, I couldn’t vote for. We are in a tough economy,” Dello Iacono said. A part of Keegan’s new contract is a $1,800 increase in his auto allowance to bring it to $7,500 annually. When factored into …

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With Parks and Rec Director in Place, Keegan Freezes Assistant Position

The department's new director, Bob Stanley, and Parks and Recreation Commission chairman Jim Maher disagree with the cut.

Days after signing a contract to become director of the Parks and Recreation Department, devastating news came to Bob Stanley that the town would freeze the assistant director position. Town Administrator Bill Keegan announced last week that he would freeze the second-in-command position at Parks and Rec until he evaluates the operation, considers consolidation with another department and gets a handle on the town’s fiscal 2012 budget. “Honestly I don’t think we are being singled out,” said Stanley. “He didn’t come right out and say it was being eliminated, but he didn’t say it wasn’t either.” Other positions in the police and fire departments, the library and Department of Public Works are also frozen, Keegan said in an interview. He said…

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Dedham Selectmen Endorse 2012 Start for Square Improvement Project

Town Meeting will have to authorize $6.1 million for the project at its annual meeting in May.

Under the option endorsed by the Board of Selectmen Thursday evening, the Dedham Square improvement project will begin in the spring of 2012. After two months of evaluating the pros and cons of two options, town representatives recommended that the project move forward under one contract, instead of two. A two-contract option would’ve allowed the project to begin this summer. "It’s better to wait a little bit and get it right, considering the investment," said Selectman Paul Reynolds. The endorsed option will occur through two “construction seasons” in 2012 and again in 2013, Town Administrator Bill Keegan said. In past meetings, the board has expressed that they wanted the least amount of impact on the businesses in the Square and hoped …

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Residents' Tax Bills to Rise an Average of $300, Town Will Seek Budget Cuts Again

The Board of Selectmen approved a plan to raise taxes to 14.37 percent, .80 percent higher than this year.

Dedham homeowners will see an average of a $300 increase in their tax bills next year, pending approval from the state's Department of Revenue. On average, taxpayers are slated to pay 14.37 percent of their home's assessed value, while commercial properties will pay 31.06 percent, according to figures provided by the town's Board of Assessors. For taxpayers, the raise will represent the fifth consecutive year tax bills went up. "The kick is we're talking about increasing taxes at the worst possible time," Selectman Carmen DelloIacono said. The office handles abatements and exemption requests – and not just from seniors as is perception, Bremer said. Often time people who retired young or young couples that own homes and others on a fixed …

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Manor Crime Watch Gets OK for Signs

The group will place 14 signs around the Manor neighborhood.

Struck by what they say is a string of crime, the Manor Neighborhood Watch Group, led by Jim Maher, will post 14 signs around the neighborhood after receiving the go ahead Thursday night from the Board of Selectmen.  "I believe, strategically, they are placed on areas of concern," Maher told selectmen. "You can't leave or enter the Manor without seeing one of these signs - that is our hope." Maher said he hopes the signs deter criminal activity. Maher, who also chairs the Parks and Recreation Commission, said Dedham police have told them research shows that crime watch signs make a difference in a neighborhood. Money raised at a Halloween block party paid for the signs, Maher said. Licenses Granted Selectmen voted to renew a slew of …

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Square Improvement Project Could See Year Delay

The town may have to wait until Town Meeting in May 2011 to ask for appropriations for the $6.1 million project, which delays its anticipated start date.

The start of the Dedham Square improvement project could see up to a year delay than originally estimated, unless the Board of Selectmen opts to call a Special Town Meeting ahead of May's annual meeting. The news comes out of a lengthy discussion with project architects and town officials at Thursday's Selectmen's meeting. Bill Keegan, Dedham's administrator, told selectmen that if Town Meeting appropriates the money – currently in the ballpark of $4.8 million – at May's meeting, then the project may not go to bid until fall 2011 and construction wouldn't start until spring 2012. Sarah MacDonald, the board's chairman, said she would like to see the project get off the ground in 2011 to match what the town told the state when it received a…

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Dedham Department Heads Peppered with Questions

At the first of several "Town Hall to Your Neighborhood" events, about 60 residents showed up to voice issues happening in their backyards.

Prepared from a few years experience under his belt, Joe Flanagan anticipated the most widely asked question at the ever-so-popular "Town Hall to Your Neighborhood" meetings: "When is my road getting paved?" And with that Flanagan, the town's public works director, brought with him the list of the roads receiving new pavement for the next three years. Sure enough, it was the popular question on the minds of residents in precincts five and sevent that turned out Monday night at the Endicott Estate. Besides when neighborhood roads get paved, the panel of nearly every town department head handled questions, comments and complaints from residents. 18-Wheels and Zooming Several residents in the two precincts voiced concern over tractor-trailers…

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d'Entremont Named New Dedham Police Chief

Selectmen voted to confirm new police chief at Thursday's meeting.

The Dedham Board of Selectmen voted unanimously (5-0) to accept Town Administrator Bill Keegan's recommendation and appoint Lt. Michael d'Entremont as the next chief of the Dedham Police Department.  Former Police Chief Michael Weir retired from the position in June, and d'Entremont has led the department since. D'Entremont has served on the Dedham force for 14 years, and seven of those as an administrator. He has a master's in criminal justice administration, an M.B.A. from Bentley, and a bachelor's degree from the University of Massachusetts. "Mike has a very sound knowledge of the inter-workings of the department - the budget, policies, procedures and the law," Keegan said after the meeting. D'Entremont will remain the acting chief …